The couple went shopping together and ended up in a lingerie boutique. Initially, they only got a couple of new sporty bras, which are comfortable to move in during their many and long travels. There, Sophia also spotted a very sensual and provocative lacey lingerie, the type one usually wears indoors to get in the mood. Seeing how interested she was in it, Maya actually went ahead and bought it for herself. Sophia was so overwhelmed by this unexpected powerplay by the cat-girl that she lost the ability to talk. She had no idea how to deal with whatever the other girl tried to imply with this action of hers.

"Ohh, this is a nice room!" The two had found an inn and got a room together. There, Maya had taken off her shoes and overknee socks before she threw herself on the big and comfortable-looking bed while acting as if nothing happened.

"..." Sophia was still very confused. Walking around in the room a little longer, she eventually sat down on the other side of the bed after she got rid of her shoes, too. "S-Say..."

"Yes~?" She sounded really cheerful.

"The... the lingerie you bought..."

"The black one you liked?"

"Y-Yes... You bought them... after I voiced... my opinion on what... they're u-used for..." She was barely able to speak in complete sentences, her face utterly red from embarrassment.

"Yep."

"Does... Does that... Are you... trying to tell me... s-something...?"

"..." Maya stayed silent. A short moment later, she got up and walked in front of Sophia. There, she put her hands on the tiger-girl's shoulders and pushed her down on the bed. Climbing on top of the blonde, the cat-girl basically mounted her while still pushing her down. Eventually, Maya brought her face closer and lightly kissed the girl's collar bone a couple of times before she slowly moved her way up on Sophia's neck before giving her a deep kiss on the lips. Once she was done with that, Maya looked her straight in the eyes with a deep blush on her cheeks. "What... What do you think I'm trying to t-tell you...?" Even the cat-girl couldn't stay calm or unaffected by her own actions.

"..." Sophia's face became even redder as she stared back at the girl on top of her while having an expression that clearly showed how overwhelmed she was by this attack.

"S-Say something..." Maya's confidence finally got entirely replaced by embarrassment. It apparently had taken her a lot to be this bold.

"Give me... a moment... I'm restarting my brain..." Sophia tried her best not to break eye contact. "Is there... Is there s-something I missed today?"

"What do you mean...?"

"You were really emotional when I told you about feeling homesick... How pushy you were about the bra fitting... Not to mention what happened inside the cabin. The lingerie you brought in front of me, which clearly is made for one thing and one thing only... And now this..." With her one free arm, she gestured at the scene of her getting pinned down on the bed by the cat-girl.

"So, what are you implying...?"

"You got... frisky before... We both did... But this much… A-Are you in, uhh... heat? Wait, does the beastfolk go into heat? Wait, will I go, too, now?! W-Will that get boosted, as well?!" As usual, she got sidetracked.

"Sophia..." Maya let go of the tiger-girl's arms and simply sat down upright on her lap.

"Y-Yes...?" Just by the tone of her voice, she already knew she messed up. Her expression was far from embarrassed by now.

"Shut up." Whatever mood they had going on, it was dead.

"I-I'm sorry... very sorry..." She deeply regretted blurting it out. "It had already left my mouth before my stupid slow brain could stop me."

"Haa..." Maya took a deep breath. "No... the humanoid-type hybrid beastfolk, like we are, they don't go into heat."

"I-I see... Right, I wouldn't suffer from monthly period cramps like at the moment then, would I?"

"Shut up." This time, the cat-girl's voice sounded much lighter. "But, yes, we wouldn't have to deal with that every month because going into heat works differently..."

"G-Good to know..." Their conversation took a bizarre turn somewhere.

"Do you want to know why... Why I behaved as I did?"

"Please tell me."

"First of, when you mentioned being homesick, I wasn't emotional. I became terrified. Terrified of losing you. Then, when you told me you love me and how I've become your most important person and a part of your new family, I was happy. Incredibly happy. That's what most likely led to my behavior and raised my affection towards you even more afterward... My heart wanted more, I guess."

"..." Sophia tried her best to hold back a stupid grin. "I'm happy, too."

"Ehehe~. Also, it made me think..." Maya glanced at the bag from the boutique in the corner of the room. "I think I'm... ready."

"..." The tiger-girl glanced to the side of the bed and noticed where her line of sight ended up at.

"We almost... crossed the line a couple of times already, after all..."

"We... d-did... but it was always in the h-heat of the moment..." Sophia clearly, and vividly remembered more than a few make-out sessions that ended up being extra spicy before they even noticed. "B-But, saying it out loud... the commitment to it, I mean... m-my brain starts melting just thinking about it..."

"H-How do you think I feel? Like you said, acting on... impulse is one thing, but giving out an... i-invitation is on a whole other level. Do you have any idea how much it took me to act so confident and all today? Inside, I was screaming the entire time!"

"S-Sorry..." For some reason, she felt the need to apologize.

"What about you... are you... r-ready, too…?" She locked eyes with her.

"..." Sophia clearly heard the question, but it took her quite a while to answer. "A-As in right n-now...?"

"Someone... killed the mood... So, maybe not..."

"Sorry..." She got the urge to apologize once more. "I, uhh... was physically ready a c-couple of times already, I think... If I hadn't ruined the mood earlier, w-we might... But, s-saying it out loud, inviting you is... You're amazing, Maya. I want to have at least half as much courage as you have."

"Thank you... Hmm?" Maya noticed there was no denial in Sophia's words, only that she was too embarrassed to verbally invite her. Physically speaking, she even approved. "I see." She kissed the tiger-girl on the cheeks before changing her position on the bed. She laid down next to Sophia and hugged her side. "How about we settle for cuddling today? We're really too much all over the place for anything else right now."

"C-Cuddling won't ever not be acceptable!" That's something Sophia's more than confident enough to engage in.

"Ehehe~." She let out a giggle. "Well, I am ready for anything else, in multiple ways, so it's not up to me, anyway." She gave the lingerie bag from the boutique another very obvious glance.

"Is that... Is that a subtle hint for me to think... about going shopping and or to prepare myself...?"

"Nah." Maya shook her head.

"R-Really...?" She thought for sure the cat-girl was implying something along those lines.

"I wasn't trying to be subtle."

"..." Sophia didn't say another word for the rest of the evening. She didn't stop cuddling with the cat-girl, though, because she never not wants to cuddle, after all. Her brain might've been fried once more, but her Maya-related instincts were still working just fine.

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During the morning of the next day, Sophia felt a little sporty and wanted to go on a run to move around and clear her head a little from the events that happened. Because she wanted to do a high-speed run, she decided to go without Maya. That's what she told the cat-girl. In reality, Sophia went to the lingerie boutique again. There, after thoroughly looking at everything with great interest, she also bought something with an impractical little amount of fabric, which was entirely made up by its looks, though. The form and design were similar to the set Maya got. Only the generous amount of lace embroidery on the cups of the bra and front of the panties resembled butterflies instead of a flowery pattern. They didn't have the bra in the perfect size for the tiger as everything was too big for her, but the girl had a way to get around that problem. She decided to solve that issue with magic in a way Maya would enjoy very much when the time to wear it comes.

After the conversation with the cat-girl, she thought it wouldn't be wrong to be prepared. Fortunately, Sophia's very good at hiding secrets, and Maya never thought she was easy to read before. Thanks to that, she never found out that the tiger didn't go running but had other plans entirely.